$5 - $10 8th Grade Social Emotional Learning Handouts (by date, oldest first)

This resource will help your students/children with daily affirmations while practicing their cursive. This resource is an EDITABLE template that includes:

1. 126 pages total in PPTX format and can be downloaded into Google Slides.

2. Each of the 25 daily affirmations has a total of 5 practice sheets.

3. If you do not like the cursive font used, this resource is completely editable OR you can email me at bigeasyhomeschoolingmom@gmail.com with a font you would like to use and I will be happy to edit this resource with the font of your choice. Please note that some fonts may not transfer correctly from Google Slides to PowerPoint and may not be aligned when you download. This is completely normal.

If your students/children enjoy this resource, I would appreciate your feedback within 24 hours after purchase and download.

Thank you so much for your continued support!

Tina Arozena - Big Easy Homeschooling Mom

linktr.ee/tidewindacademy

Embark on a journey of friendship, loyalty, and personal growth with this captivating collection of eight short stories, perfect for teaching social-emotional learning and character education in the classroom.

"Friendship and Loyalty: Stories about the Challenges and Rewards of Maintaining Strong Friendships" is a powerful tool for educators seeking to foster meaningful discussions and lessons on the importance of building and maintaining healthy relationships. Each story in this collection highlights different aspects of friendship, such as trust, empathy, communication, and standing up for what's right, making it an invaluable resource for teaching essential life skills.

As students follow the journeys of Emma and Olivia, Jack and Liam, Maya and Zoe, and other memorable characters, they will learn valuable lessons about the power of unexpected connections, the importance of reconciliation, and the strength that comes from supporting one another through difficult times. These stories also tackle important topics such as peer pressure, standing up for oneself and others, and the consequences of one's actions on friendships.

Each story comes with a vocab list (word, part of speech, definition), a selection of potential assignments, a breakdown of the story structure, and applicable Common Core and National Health Education standards. All stories are also available individually from the DEEPbyDESIGN store.

Friendship and Loyalty: Stories about the Challenges and Rewards of Maintaining Strong Friendship

1. "The Unbreakable Bond": Two best friends, Emma and Olivia, find their friendship tested when they are assigned to compete against each other in a school science fair. As the competition intensifies, they must navigate the challenges of remaining loyal to each other while pursuing their individual goals.
2. "The Long-Distance Friendship": When Jack's best friend, Liam, moves to another country, they promise to stay in touch. Despite the time differences and the challenges of maintaining a long-distance friendship, the boys find creative ways to keep their bond strong.
3. "The Unexpected Friendship": Maya, a shy bookworm, and Zoe, a popular athlete, are paired together for a school project. As they work together, they discover that despite their differences, they have more in common than they thought and form an unlikely but powerful friendship.
4. "The Friendship Fallout": Aiden and Ethan have been best friends since kindergarten, but when a misunderstanding leads to a falling out, they must find a way to reconcile and repair their friendship.
5. "The Loyal Sidekick": When Sophia, the school's drama star, loses her voice before the big play, her best friend and understudy, Lily, steps in to help. Lily must balance her loyalty to Sophia with her own dreams of being in the spotlight.
6. "The Secret Keeper": When Nate confides in his best friend, Luke, about a family secret, Luke must decide whether to keep the secret or risk their friendship by telling an adult who can help.
7. "The Friendship Game": Four best friends, Ava, Bella, Chloe, and Daisy, create a game to test their friendship. As the challenges become more intense, they must decide what's more important: winning the game or maintaining their bond.
8. "The Friendship Rescue": When Mia's best friend, Sophie, starts hanging out with a new group of friends who engage in risky behavior, Mia must find the courage to stand up for what's right and help Sophie see the value of their true friendship.

Are you looking for engaging activities to support classroom community and reflection? Then download this BUNDLE Back to School Reflection Activities Getting to Know You Middle School! This is all you need for your back-to-school activities!

Categories Game

Use this brainstorming game to get students working together and get everyone participating! It's also a fun way to get to know your students!

Students work individually or in small groups to brainstorm answers to various topics and categories. This no prep activity takes one minute to learn, can be played repeatedly, and is perfect for building a foundation of teamwork and thinking forward to the new year.

➟ To play, students will see a prompt and brainstorm answers. Prompts include things such as:

• Name something you will do at the beginning of the school year that starts with the letter "A"
• What is one thing you will do with friends that starts with the letter "C"
• What do you think you will learn about yourself this year that starts with the letter "U"

See how creative your students can get all while learning about each other and thinking ahead to the new year!

Reflection Activity for Team Building and Discussion

In this no-prep resource, students reflect on times they persevered or felt proud of themselves, on friendships, goals, learning strategies, grit, and other topics. Great for Back to School or to strengthen classroom community any time during the year! In a think-and-share manner of engaging, students will build relationships through thinking, participating in small discussion groups, and writing about their thoughts, feelings, and experiences. The activity ends with an engaging Top 10 list. This resource is both reflective and interactive and fosters team building, allowing the students to think about the year ahead. This activity can be completed in 1 class with homework, expanded over 2 classes, or completed during the last 10 minutes of several classes. Other options include selecting only one set of questions on which students can reflect.

Getting to Know You Brainstorming Activity

With this engaging no prep virtual or in class activity, students brainstorm responses for each letter of the alphabet. Questions include sharing about themselves, their likes and dislikes, what they enjoy about school, and things they want to accomplish in their life (aka, a bucket list). 

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❤ Other Resources You'll LOVE:

• Back to School Getting to Know You Activity - Dice Games!
• Back to School Bundle with Categories Game and Reflections
• BACK to SCHOOL Getting to Know You Activity for Team Building
• Bulletin Board to Support Social Emotional Learning on Importance of Education
• Back to School Reflection Activity for Team Building and Discussion